SVEN AND LIFE

January 12th 2001, The England FA was announced their first ever foreign national team manager, Sven Goran Eriksson, following the resignation of England manager, Kevin Keegan, after a home loss to Germany in October 2000. 

Sven Goran Eriksson joked that "If we don't get results, they will try to hang me" as he made his way into the FA HQ at Lancaster Gate, arriving fresh from the Italian club, Lazio, where he had just won the "Scudetto" for the first time. It was a brave move by the FA, representing a nation with a notoriously insular attitiude. Chief executive, Adam Crozier was a "go-getting" Chief Executive and the FA's gamble seemed to pay off when England was rampant in their World Cup qualifier, winning 5-1 in Germany. I remember it well! His predecessor, Kevin Keegan had lost 0-1 in a flacid home defeat against the Germans earler. By the 2002 World Cup Finals' competition, England could only reach the Quarter-finals, where as the Germans regrouped and got to they final, maintaining their record of getting furtheer than England in every tournament following the defeat in 1966.  This pattern continued throughout Eriksson's reign, where the Germans achieved qualification effortlessly and England would come up "short" in the Finals.

After being caught on camera discussing other job opportunities, Eriksson failed again in early 2006, in an abysmal campaign in that year's World Cup, with England's struggle to beat lowly Trinidad and Tobago. He expected to be "hounded out" by the press. He did partially repair his reputation but then along came Ulrika Jonsson.

Sven and Ulrika’s affair took place when the former England and Manchester City boss was in a relationship with Italian lawyer Nancy Dell'Olio, 62. Sven moved to London when he took charge of the Three Lions in 2001, which is when he met Ulrika. 

News of Eriksson's terminal cancer has recently emerged on Swedish radio, when the 75-year-old announced that he had a year "or maybe a little less" to live. He explained how he had suddenly collapsed during a 5km run, and after seeing his doctors, who confirmed he had just had a stroke, his cancer was diagnosed. Sven fights on today.

Here's Sven at his best!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2We_ZbgcGY and his record.

Playing Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1964–1971	Torsby	109	(23)
1971–1972	SK Sifhälla	22	(1)
1972–1973	Karlskoga	19	(4)
Total		150	(28)
Managerial career
1977–1978	Degerfors
1979–1982	IFK Göteborg
1982–1984	Benfica
1984–1987	Roma
1987–1989	Fiorentina
1989–1992	Benfica
1992–1997	Sampdoria
1997–2001	Lazio
2001–2006	England
2007–2008	Manchester City
2008–2009	Mexico
2010	Ivory Coast
2010–2011	Leicester City
2013–2014	Guangzhou R&F
2014–2016	Shanghai SIPG
2016–2017	Shenzhen
2018–2019	Philippines
*Club domestic league appearances and goals